Police pursuit from El Cajon to Oceanside ends with one arrest and thousands of dollars in stolen cigarettes

An 18-year-old man from Alameda County was arrested and three others were being sought Monday in connection with the alleged burglary of an El Cajon distribution company that supplies convenience stores, a police official said.

Police were called by an alarm company around 1:15 a.m. after alarms were tripped at the Trepco West site on Walter Way. Alarm company employees reported seeing people inside the business on surveillance video cameras, said El Cajon police Lt. Will Guerin.

Officers headed to the business and saw a minivan driving off, and began a pursuit, Guerin said.

The vehicle headed west, and then north on Interstate 5.

Officers at some point dropped the pursuit, but a San Diego police helicopter continued to track the minivan. The driver exited at Mission Avenue and ditched the vehicle in the parking structure at the Oceanside Civic Center shortly before 2 a.m., Guerin said.

Four people took off running. A man from Livermore was arrested on suspicion of burglary, conspiracy, felony evasion and possession of stolen property. Officers searched the area for more than an hour but were unable to locate the other suspects, he said.

Officers recovered an estimated $78,000 worth of stolen merchandise in the van, primarily boxes of cigarette cartons. The minivan was a rental out of the Oakland area and was reported stolen, Guerin said.